Report: McNabb prefers Vikings in a trade

Tim Yotter

03/26/2010

Donovan McNabb has said he wants to stay in Philadelphia, but if the Eagles are set on trading him, his first choice would be to reunite with Brad Childress and Kevin Rogers with the Vikings, according to sources cited by the Philadelphia Inquirer.

The Vikings continue to wait on a decision from quarterback Brett Favre and say they will put no pressure on him to make a decision in the near future. Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Eagles are "entertaining" offers for another option if Favre does retire.

Eagles coach Andy Reid told reporters at the NFL owners meetings on Wednesday that he is listening to offers for all three of his quarterbacks – incumbent starter Donovan McNabb, apparent heir Kevin Kolb and Michael Vick. But while the Eagles are reportedly looking for a top-42 pick for McNabb – the most likely of those three to be traded – the quarteback apparently has the Vikings at the top of his wish list if he doesn't remain in Philadelphia, according to Philadelphia Inquirer, which cited "sources close to the situation."

That revelation should come as no surprise, given that McNabb was a rookie in the NFL in 1999 when Vikings coach Brad Childress was his quarterbacks coach in Philadelphia. Childress later ascended to offensive coordinator under Reid. With McNabb at quarterback and Childress as an offensive coach the Eagles made the playoffs five times from 2000 to 2005, winning four straight NFC East titles and going to Super Bowl XXXIX.

The Eagles drafted McNabb in the first round after he played under Vikings quarterbacks coach Kevin Rogers, who was the offensive coordinator at Syracuse. Once he was with Childress at Philadelphia, McNabb made five Pro Bowls. From 2002-2005, no NFC team won more games than Philadelphia's 43.

However, with Favre last year, the Vikings were just as prolific, as he threw for 4,202 yards, 33 touchdowns, seven interceptions and had a 107.2 rating, meaning Favre is likely still the Vikings' first choice as long as he wants to play again in 2010. But, given Favre's penchant for waiting on offseason decisions – he didn't sign with the Vikings until Aug. 18 last year – he may not be ready to give the team an answer.

Of course, it's very possible that the Vikings already know that Favre is coming back and both sides have agreed to keep the decision private until later in the offseason. Childress has said repeatedly this offseason that the team is willing to give Favre the time he needs to make a decision.

"I think he kind of defines things a different way, where everybody said, ‘Well, he had to be here for OTAs, for the mandatory minicamp, he's trying to get out of training camp.'" Childress said at the NFL Scouting Combine last month. "I just think it's important to manage a guy's resources, particularly on a 40- or 41-year old. There's really not a manual on that, just like there's not a manual for raising kids. There's not a manual for 40, 41, and to have one of his best years, you just have to be mindful of that."

Childress also said that players on the team understand that Favre at 40 years old is in a different situation than most NFL players.

"The old not knowing, not knowing, not knowing – you can question guys on our team and say, ‘Would it be nice to know sooner than later?' Yeah, but you have to be able to deal with uncertainty and ambiguity in this business, whether you're a player, whether you're a coach and deal with it well," Childress said. "I think our players get that, understand that. I think that they'll be fine."

The only issue is that if the team truly doesn't know if Favre will be coming back or not, it puts them in an awkward situation while other teams potentially chase after a trade agreement for McNabb.

Getting a deal before the draft is likely a priority for the Eagles since McNabb is owed a $6.2 million bonus on May 5.